Seed Collecting:

Gardeners' Notes:

I brought a small branch about 7 inches long from a grown Euphorbia caracasana, from Caracas -Venezuela- about seven years ago.
Planted the brach in our back yard (upsidedown) and even so, the branch started to grow leaves and roots in less than a couple of weeks. It's a very fast grown shrub; lovely in the summer. It grows wild everywhere in the Caracas area. I believe it 's got the name for that particular spot.
It has lovely bright red-cardenal leaves and small yellow flowers.
It gets "sad" or dormand in winter, although in South Florida there's no such a thing as cold weather. She loves sun and warmth.
The milky substance that comes when a branch/leave is broken, is quite harmfull to some skins (not mine). My wife
is very allergic to it, causing bu... read morerning blemishes that hurt a lot.

You can cut small branches (5-7 " long) and put them on any fertile soil and it'll grow beautifully.

In Spring or summer some green juicy worms attack the leaves (2" long and a pinkie in diameter). Should you know a good cajun recipe for those worms... please share it!

The leaves will get the darker shade when in full sun. When it is kept continuously under shade for a considerable period, the newer growth will have greener leaves which will turn to that red if moved to full sun for a few days. The reddish leaves at the bottom and the greener growth at the top makes it a good sight, esp. against a contrasting background. Easy to maintain this plant.

I am not sure about the species name of this plant, but it IS a Euphorbia species. This genus is one of the most diverse in the plant kingdom. This plant is somewhat related to the common Poinsettia, ALSO a Euphorbia species. It doesn't have to look like a succulent to be a Euphorbia. It has more to do with the floral anatomy and biology.

By the way, all Euphorbias have poisonous sap, but the poison properties vary a LOT from species to species. Poinsettias, for example, are commonly blamed for poisoning dogs and cats, but I can tell you as a veterinarian that this is not a very poisonous plant- only irritating to the mucosal tissues. Some Euphorbias are very poisonous, by the way.

I don't have Euphorbia on my property, but I do like the look of the foilage on the shrub that's posted at the Database & would be very interested to know more about it. Purple Spurge looks similar to the plant pictured here.

I have grown Euphorbia for a number of years. There are a number of varieties. Mine has a lovely lime yellow colour in the spring. It seems to keep a wonderful rounded mound form. Personally, I think the only drawback to this plant is that it reseeds. The few new plants can be dug out and given away. I would not call it invasive.